President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed the Federal Government to produce a roadmap within 180 days for the full launch of Nigeria’s Digital Free Zones initiative, as the administration seeks to position the country as a base for technology, finance and digital service companies targeting global markets.
The directive was disclosed in a statement by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga. Under the plan, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Jumoke Oduwole, who also serves as Vice-Chairman and Implementation Coordinator of the Presidential Steering Committee on Digital Free Zones, will work with the committee and the Itana Innovation project to develop the roadmap.
The initiative is designed to make it easier for Nigerian technology and service companies to raise international capital, create jobs locally and serve customers beyond the country without having to establish their headquarters and intellectual property in foreign jurisdictions.
Tinubu said Nigeria already has the talent and entrepreneurial capacity to build companies capable of competing globally, arguing that the country should create conditions that allow those businesses to grow from within Nigeria.
He said the government’s objective is for more of the economic value generated by Nigerian talent to remain in the country through jobs, investment, professional services, intellectual property and the expansion of locally based businesses.
The President also said he wants the next generation of African technology, finance and service companies to be built, headquartered and scaled internationally from Nigeria.
The policy is already taking shape through Itana, which the Presidency described as Nigeria’s first Digital Free Zone. Itana has been licensed by the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority and provides a platform for digital and service businesses from Nigeria and across Africa to establish and operate from the country.
The Africa Finance Corporation is backing the $500 million Itana Innovation project at Alaro City in Lagos. The project is expected to combine an enabling policy environment with an innovation campus, access to capital and ecosystem services aimed at helping African startups scale while retaining more of the value they create on the continent.
Tinubu said the ambition goes beyond building technology parks, with the government seeking an environment where African companies can be incorporated, financed and governed from Nigeria while serving markets across Africa and the wider world.
He also pointed to the possibility of expanding access to global employment opportunities for Nigerians outside the country’s major commercial centres, naming Kano, Enugu, Warri, Minna, Maiduguri and Ibadan among cities where young Nigerians should be able to work for international companies without relocating abroad.
The Digital Free Zones initiative forms part of a wider government push to expand Nigeria’s participation in the global digital services economy. The administration launched the “Hire from Nigeria” campaign in August 2026, targeting one million export-linked jobs over five years by connecting Nigerian professionals with international employers while they remain in the country.
The latest directive therefore places implementation of the Digital Free Zones initiative on a defined 180-day timeline, with the roadmap expected to provide the framework for moving the programme from policy ambition to wider implementation.
